Kendrick Lamar teaches us that, in public debate, refuting your opponent's arguments point by point is less effective than identifying your opponent's single greatest weakness and maintaining message discipline.
I don’t think it will have the same effect as “certified pedophile”. 1 in 9 Americans had been to prison, lots of people know someone who is a felon they can sympathize with. There are far less diddlers and people don’t like them. The lesson here would be to repeat the SA civil conviction IMO.